Duke LDOC lineup still under wraps

Macklemore performs at the 2012 Last Day of Classes celebration in April. This year’s LDOC Committee plans to announce the musicians for the 2013 celebration soon after Winter Break.

As students take on their last day of Fall classes, student organizers are finalizing the artist line-up for the Spring LDOC concert.

The celebration, which will take place April 24, will provide students with a wider variety of daytime and evening entertainment than in past years, said senior Bo Triplett, co-chair of the Duke University Union LDOC committee. He added that the committee has finalized its selection of musical acts.

“I will definitely say that we have figured out the roster, but we are still waiting to hear back from the artists,” Triplett said. “I cannot give out any specifics yet due to contractual obligations.”

He noted that students can expect to hear the official final line-up shortly after Winter Break. But rumors are already starting to spread.

Recent posts from the Duke LDOC Twitter handle mentioned possible performances by musicians Ciara or Nickelback. Triplett said students should not take these suggestions seriously.

“As far as the tweets go, they’re total jokes,” DUU President Nathan Nye, a senior, noted in an email Thursday. “We would never make anyone listen to Nickelback.”

The artists will include a hip-hop group, a multi-artist band and an electronic dance music act, Triplett said. He added that he hopes the variety of genres will get students “hyped” about the music.

“Students will feel like they are at a concert festival with daytime programming that [they] are going to be excited about. We have both corporate and local sponsors,” Triplett said. “It is going to be like Bonnaroo.”

Without a finalized line-up, many students do not know what to expect from the event.

“I have never experienced LDOC, so I don’t really know what makes a good LDOC or a bad LDOC,” freshman Jared Alosio said. “But I think LMFAO would be really fun, but they might be too popular for us to book.”

Triplett said that this LDOC will be a new experience for both freshmen and upperclassmen who have experienced the celebration before. He said the day will focus more on the music than in years past.

The committee has faced some challenges—some of the contracts drawn up with possible musical acts fell through earlier this Fall. But the committee does not anticipate any further obstacles for the contracts that they have in place, Triplett said.

In addition to planning the musical line-up, the committee is also trying to find ways to incorporate the new housing model into the Spring event, Triplet added. In previous years, dorms have had individual events and brought their benches onto the quad.

The committee also faces the logistical challenge of setting up simultaneous events for students to enjoy. Triplett noted that due to academic concerns, no concert can begin before the final class of the day has ended.

Although the overall feel of LDOC will be different from years past, Triplett said that student favorites, such as the “K-Ville barbeque,” are still planned for this year.